Linemen

The Ravens have talked about adding some offensive linemen during the draft, but they need to improve their evaluations. Since head coach John Harbaugh joined the Ravens, the team hasn't fared well as far as selecting offensive linemen. In 2008, they selected UTEP offensive tackle Oniel Cousins in the third round. He is no longer with the team. In 2009, they selected Mississippi offensive tackle Michael Oher in the first round. Oher has been solid, but not the dominant type or even the starting left offensive tackle the Ravens expected.

By Jeff Zrebiec and Aaron Wilson and The Baltimore Sun | August 30, 2014

The Ravens pared their roster down to the NFL's required 53-player limit Saturday, choosing to keep two quarterbacks and seven wide receivers and leaving themselves thin at cornerback and along the offensive and defensive lines. Among their 13 cuts were veteran guard A.Q. Shipley, who started nine games last year; outside linebacker John Simon, a fourth-round draft pick in 2013; quarterback Keith Wenning, a sixth-round selection in May; and veteran cornerbacks Dominique Franks and Derek Cox. With Wenning's release, the Ravens will enter their fifth straight season with just two quarterbacks on the roster.

I grew up around the Northwood section of Baltimore back in the 1950's. My father was a cable splicer in the underground division of the Baltimore Gas & Electric Co. They were the days before "bucket"' trucks. My dad and his crew worked down manholes with city rats and climbed telephone poles with cleats and pole straps. When we had any storm outages, I can remember many times when I would not see my dad for a week or more. He would work 16 hours a day, go back to the shop to sleep on a cot for a few hours, and hit the street again.

The Ravens released center Reggie Stephens and four other players on Friday. Outside linebacker D.J. Roberts, tight end Nathan Overbay and undrafted rookie defensive linemen Levi Brown and Derrick Hopkins were also waived, the team announced. The Ravens also plan to cut undrafted rookie defensive tackle A.J. Patiali'i and hope to sign him to their practice squad, according to a source. Stephens was on the Ravens' practice squad last season. A 2010 Cincinnati Bengals seventh-round draft pick, he previously played with the Chicago Bears and Buffalo Bills.

So far, the best rookie from this year's Ravens draft class has been guard/tackle Kelechi Osemele, the second-round pick out of Iowa State. He may not be starting now, but he will be soon, possibly in the season opener against the Cincinnati Bengals. Yes, Osemele is that good. He has great size, foot speed and athleticism. For a young player, he has shown poise and experience in learning the game and picking up blitzes. Plus, he has those long arms, which allows him to keep defensive linemen away from his body.

In the weeks leading up to April's NFL draft, I will highlight four players at each position whom the Ravens could target at different stages in the draft -- from their top pick to their Mr. Irrelevant. In this post, I will focus on interior offensive linemen. Remember, I'm not saying the Ravens will take a center or a guard with their first-round pick. I'm just giving you a player whom they might consider if they decided to go that route. Here are four interior offensive linemen they could have in their sights: Round 1: Mike Pouncey, Florida.

The Ravens are doing the right thing by signing veteran offensive linemen like guard Bobbie Williams and center Tony Wragge. Regardless of head coach John Harbaugh saying the left guard position is open, it really isn't because Williams is the starter. Barring injury, he'll be in the lineup in the season opener. When he was with the Bengals, Williams used to play well against the Ravens and he got an endorsement from Ravens defensive tackle Haloti Ngata during the offseason.

All 88 of the senior football players honored at Wednesday night's 48th annual Scholar Athlete Awards Dinner are just as comfortable discussing literature, science or mathematics as they are dissecting a Wing-T offense or a safety blitz. The event, presented by the Greater Baltimore Chapter of the National Football Foundation and College Hall of Fame at Martin's West, also unveiled five regional scholarship winners among the players from Baltimore City, Anne Arundel, Carroll, Frederick, Harford, Howard and Baltimore counties.

ATLANTA -- Playing football is not hazardous to your health -- unless you're an offensive or defensive linemen. That was a conclusion of a study conducted by the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) and released by the NFL Players Association yesterday.The study of 6,848 players who played between 1959 and 1988 revealed that 46 percent fewer players died compared to an equal number of males of similar age and race in the general population.That research suggests that former football players will live as long as the average male, although the majority is still too young to determine at what age the average player dies.

COLLEGE PARK - There have been times during preseason practice when Damian Prince and Derwin Gray have flashed the skill that made them highly-rated recruits. There have been times both players - especially Gray - have looked capable of making an immediate impact along Maryland's offensive line. Many other times, they have looked like freshmen. Maryland coaches believe both will be good players. Teammates say the same. But most freshmen are a work in progress at this point and Prince and Gray are no different.

Two of the Ravens' most promising defensive rookies suffered injuries Wednesday at training camp. Defensive end Brent Urban, a fourth round draft pick out of Virginia, was carted off the field into the training room, unable to put weight on his right leg. Urban has injured his right knee and will have a magnetic resonance imaging exam tonight to determine the severity of the damage. Urban had ankle surgery in February following the Senior Bowl, but had fully recovered from the procedure.

After enjoying more of a team mentality in college, first-year pros learn quickly during OTAs and minicamp that life in the NFL is spent mostly with your position groups. The Ravens four first-year offensive lineman - fifth-round pick John Urschel, plus undrafted free agents James Hurst, Brett Van Sloten, and Parker Graham - began their pro development this year as a unit. They know they could see their rookie group trimmed when the roster is dropped from 90 to 53 by the end of training camp, but have used this spring's team activities to learn the pro game together and improve their own game.

Maryland bulked up on offensive linemen during the last recruiting period, but one of its targets won't be attending school in the fall. Larry Mazyck, a junior college transfer, did not meet necessary academic standards and won't be enrolling, according to multiple sources. Mazyck is listed at 6 feet 8 inches and 340 pounds. He attended Washington's Friendship Collegiate and, later, Iowa Western Community College. Maryland's incoming class includes top offensive line target Damian Prince (Bishop McNamara)

COLLEGE PARK - Maryland's football team introduced a 17-member recruiting class Wednesday that - while not highly ranked - left the coaches giddy. Their excitement was based largely on the signing day addition of top target Damian Prince and four other players to an offensive line in need of an upgrade as the Terps head to the Big Ten next season. Offensive line appeared to be Maryland's top position of need, and the Terps managed to bolster it with a player ranked by Rivals.com as the nation's No. 2 offensive tackle recruit.

Maryland coaches noticed something unusual when they reviewed the game video from the 63-0 loss to Florida State last Saturday. Before Maryland would snap the ball, Seminoles defensive lineman Mario Edwards Jr. would occasionally point to the sky as if signaling that he knew a pass was coming. Was Maryland somehow telegraphing its intentions to run or pass? Maryland offensive coordinator Mike Locksley said today that the Terps need to avoid any pre-snap behavior or stances that give the defense clues.

Maryland junior offensive guard Donnie Woods said yesterday that he will not return for his senior season because he wants to pursue a career in either the military or as a police officer. Reserve guard Garrick Clig also will not return next year, but he will graduate this summer, a school spokesman confirmed. Woods was one of the Terps' top offensive linemen before he suffered a serious neck injury against Miami this season. Maryland coach Ralph Friedgen said he told Woods that he hopes he doesn't regret the decision.

Two stories that slipped under the radar recently, one hopeful, one not so much, provide yet another window into the soul of where high school athletics are and where they might be headed. A new Iowa State University study of 251 Iowa high school football teams found that 9 percent of the linemen on those squads in the 2005 season had body mass indexes (or BMI) that could qualify as adult-class obesity, which suggests that we're willing to put our kids' health at risk earlier and earlier in the name of supposedly making them better.

As he delivered his induction speech into the Pro Football Hall of Fame Saturday night, Ravens offensive tackle Jonathan Ogden was as cool and humble as he was on the field during his 12 seasons in Baltimore. He showed signs of nervousness the day before but on Saturday night he praised and thanked an endless amount of supporters, talked about being the first draft pick in Ravens' history, showed off two Super Bowl rings and drew a huge applause from the large number of Ravens fans in attendance.

As you read about the various training camp competitions over the next 10 days, you probably won't see much written about the offensive line. That's because barring injuries, the starters appear to be set. Bryant McKinnie , who re-signed with the Ravens in May, is the presumed starter at left tackle. Dominant after moving from right tackle to left guard for last year's playoff run, Kelechi Osemele will remain at that spot. Gino Gradkowski didn't start any games last year, but he's the clear favorite to start at center in place of the retired Matt Birk . If he is healthy, Marshal Yanda remains one of the best right guards in the NFL, while Michael Oher is entrenched at right tackle.